writing-xcuitests

# Writing XCUITests

Guide for writing robust, maintainable XCUITests for iOS and macOS applications. This skill focuses on practical patterns, element querying strategies, and techniques to reduce test flakiness.

## Quick Start

### Element Queries

Prefer accessibility identifiers for reliable element queries:

```swift
// Best: Accessibility identifier
app.buttons["loginButton"].tap()

// Good: Text matching (fragile to localization)
app.buttons["Log In"].tap()

// Avoid: Index-based queries (brittle to UI changes)
app.buttons.element(boundBy: 0).tap()
```

Set accessibility identifiers in your app code:

```swift
button.accessibilityIdentifier = "loginButton"
```

Query by element type and identifier:

```swift
let emailField = app.textFields["emailField"]
let passwordField = app.secureTextFields["passwordField"]
let submitButton = app.buttons["submitButton"]
let statusLabel = app.staticTexts["statusLabel"]
```

### Common Interactions

**Tap elements:**

```swift
app.buttons["submitButton"].tap()
```

**Type text:**

```swift
app.textFields["emailField"].tap()
app.textFields["emailField"].typeText("user@example.com")
```

**Clear and type (preferred for input fields):**

```swift
let emailField = app.textFields["emailField"]
emailField.tap()
// Clear existing text by typing delete keys
if let value = emailField.value as? String, !value.isEmpty {
    let deleteString = String(repeating: XCUIKeyboardKey.delete.rawValue,
                              count: value.count)
    emailField.typeText(deleteString)
}
emailField.typeText("new@example.com")
```

**Toggle switches:**

```swift
let toggleSwitch = app.switches["notificationSwitch"]
if toggleSwitch.value as? String == "0" {
    toggleSwitch.tap()
}
```

### Waiting for Elements

Always wait for elements before interacting:

```swift
let loginButton = app.buttons["loginButton"]
XCTAssertTrue(loginButton.waitForExistence(timeout: 5))
loginButton.tap()
```

Wait for element to disappear (loading indicators):

```